Skykitten, Skycat.

Stratsat, and the A-10 Airship

In April 2001 with my wife Pat, I was invited to re-visit RAF Cardington to see the work of Advanced Technologies Group.

From the air, the airship
hangars dominate the landscape near the little village of Cardington in Bedfordshire.

To the right
can be seen is a circular mooring area and below that a shallow rectangular pool for trial
water landings and takeoffs. I noted that since my last visit in 1971, the remains of the old wooden mooring mast where the R.100 and R.101 used to be moored had been removed.

We entered the larger airship hanger two, (painted green)

At the time of our visit, the sheds was used by the Building Research Establishment as a building testing facility.

Multi- storey steel, concrete and wooden buildings were constructed and then destructively tested.

In 1968 some scenes for 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' were filmed at the airship sheds. Also during the 1960s, much of the film

'Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines' was shot in the vicinity of the village.

Leaving that hangar we braved the cold wind and entered hangar one. At one end was a lonely barrage balloon tethered
to a truck.

Hangar 1 had many gaping holes, and
high above the central interior hung a huge fabric sheet, not
just to deflect falling objects but to avoid airships and workers
being drenched with rain.

My wife Pat and I were issued with hard hats as loose bolts,
encouraged by rust and nesting birds sometimes plummet to the floor
at great speed.

Our two guides pointed out the three main lighter than air projects underway by ATG.

There is little metal content in the airship, unlike conventional aircraft; - so less likely to interfere with electronic devices.

Airship controls on the mockup.

Rear cabin. Looking forward to the control cabin.

At the far end of the hangar was the A-10, an airship of conventional design. It emerges, above. The internal ballonet is visible through the transluscent fabric of the airship.

The A-10 leaves the hangar and is prepared for launch.

It is powered by two 100 bhp horizontally opposed two-stroke diesel engines, supercharged and with direct fuel injection. They are mounted beside the cabin module and can be rotated. This improves take-off control, and allows the airship to hover.

The payload with pilot and four passengers totals
740 kgs / 1,631 lbs.

Flight Controls.- Split channel, optically signalled, flight control system with provision
for an autopilot facility.
Low pressure pneumatic system for powering of flight control actuators,
providing very low susceptibility to lightning strike and Electro Magnetic
Induction.

This is StratSat. The unadorned helium filled envelope was held down by heavy concrete blocks. A number of triangular anchor points stand ready to carry the load.

It will become an unmanned stratospheric airship. It is intended to be used as a replacement for terrestrial mobile phone masts. The airship would carry transponders for Internet, mobile phone, digital radio, direct broadcast TV and surveillance services.

Solar power would enable these airships to hover high above weather systems.

This artists illustration (courtesy Kecks Institute for Space Studies) shows an American stratospheric airship. This one to carry astronomical telescopes into a near space environment.

The operating life expectancy is five years, and the vehicle could be landed for repairs or modifications unlike a space satellite.

All airships need to retain their shape and the extreme air pressure change between ground and stratosphere presents a challenge for the launch itself. The day/night temperature variations is another.

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Lockeed Martin, the giant American Aerospace company were developing the P-791 Hybrid Airship, however the project has apparently stalled.

It can be seen here in flight.

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As well, Northrop Grumman was developing what was thought to be successor to the Skycat.

It was to become a long-endurance multi- intelligence vehicle (LEMV) for the U.S. Army. The LEMV flew in August 2012 at Lakehurst, New Jersey, ten months later than promised and seven months after it was supposed to be deployed in Afghanistan for an operational trial.

These delays, and U.S. defence budget cuts, led to cancellation of the LEMV in February 2013. The Army had spent $297 million on the project.

It only had one 90 minute flight.

The company who developed the Skycat, Hybrid Aerial Vehicles, was able to purchase the deflated American Airship at scrap price, $301,000, gain an export license and ship it to the UK. Early this year 2015, the company re-inflated a 300-foot long, 80-foot-high envelope with pressurized air. That's it below.

.More details on video can be seen here>> (slow and pixelated link -it finally clears)>>

Hybrid Air Vehicles has started the Airlander 10 engine program,
The current engine tests are focused on identifying future improvements to Airlander propulsion systems prior to a series of trials and demonstrations with a range of civil and military customers during 2016.

The latest milestone in Airlander's development has been made possible with assistance from Innovate UK and a £3.4m Regional Growth Fund Grant.
All this has underpinned the company's ability to hire new staff in 2014.

As a result of this extra funding, these photographs indicate the further progress made with the airship ........>

This company recently incorporated in the UK, will be soon bringing airships to the Middle East for the very first time. Based in UAE it plans to creat a base for airship operations, maintenance, repair, overhaul, and crew training enterprise with a focus on hybrid airships, as they become available from manufacturers.